SAO PAULO: Brazil's ex-president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who is undergoing treatment for throat cancer, plans to join his party in campaigning for next year's regional elections, officials said Friday.
Lula "certainly" plans to participate in the campaigns for the Worker's Party, Minister of Planning Miriam Belchior said after a meeting with the former leader.
She said the pair spoke about Lula's treatment for just five minutes, and spent the rest of the time talking politics, and his favourite soccer team, the Corinthians.
Lula, 66, has completed the first session of chemotherapy without complications, since he was diagnosed with the most common form of throat cancer on Saturday, after being hospitalized for throat pain.
The former smoker, who is known for his raspy voice, is scheduled to undergo three rounds of chemotherapy at 21-day intervals by year's end, followed by radiation therapy in January, according to his doctors who rated his prospects for recovery as "very good."
Earlier this week, Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff, who underwent successful chemotherapy herself in 2009, visited her predecessor and said he was in fighting spirits.
Brazil's first democratically elected leftist president, Lula stepped down with a 80 percent approval rating, after two consecutive terms from January 2003 to December 2010.
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